True cost of setting up new nation would be £2.4bn, says think-tank

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Scotland would face a bill of a further £2 billion if it had to set up a new currencyJames Glossop/The Times

Hamish Macdonell

Last updated at 12:01AM, September 1 2014

An independent Scotland would face set-up costs of £2.4 billion — ten times more than the Scottish government’s estimate, according to a leading economic think-tank.

Scotland would face a bill of a further £2 billion if it had to set up a new currency in the event that Westminster delivered on its pledge to veto a currency union, the Centre for Economics and Business Research said yesterday.

But the think-tank said that the start-up costs could be recouped through simplification and significant savings on areas such as defence.

The UK Treasury has previously put start-up costs at £1.5 billion. The SNP